What is Breast Augmentation With Fat Grafting?

Fat transfer breast augmentation is an innovative plastic surgery technique to increase the breast size without the use of implants. 

In this procedure, the surgeon aims to use an appropriate technique to extract the purest, most viable fat tissue from the donor sites of the patient for re-injection into the breasts. This can enable the development of longer-lasting, more natural results. 

Breast augmentation with fat transfer involves three vital phases, which include fat removal, fat processing, and fat re-injection. Certain patients prefer this approach over implants as the outcomes can be more natural-looking, and the technique involves no risk of implant failure. 

Virginia Institute of Plastic Surgery, led by board certified plastic surgeons Dr. Burton M. Sundin and Dr. Reps B. Sundin, provides fat grafting breast enhancement to patients in Richmond, Fredericksburg, Tysons Corner, Northern Virginia, Washington DC, and surrounding locations.

Fat Extraction

The tumescent liposuction technique is frequently used to extract the necessary amount of fat from areas of excess fat. This plastic surgery technique can be performed using only local anesthesia and tiny incisions. 

In this procedure, the surgeon inserts a narrow cannula into the targeted area through the incision to disintegrate the fat tissue and subsequently suction it out using a syringe or pump attached to the other end of the cannula.

The surgeon will be able to remove the tiniest fat particles with a narrow cannula, which are most suitable for fat grafting in the breasts. The buttocks, back, thigh, and abdomen are common donor sites for fat extraction. This procedure improves the overall body definition as an incidental advantage of liposuction in the sites of excess fat tissue.

Fat Processing

The fat that is accumulated through the liposuction process will be meticulously processed and purified using techniques such as centrifugation and decanting. Only a portion of donor fat will be suitable for re-injection in the breasts. Skilled cosmetic surgeons normally use 25 percent of the extracted fat cells for transfer to the breasts.

The surgeon will strive to re-inject only the topmost quality donor fat cells into the breasts for enhancement to create more homogenous results. Liposuction may sometimes be undertaken in multiple donor sites, rather than a single area, to extract a sufficient quantity of qualified fat.

Fat Re-injection

The surgeon will use small injections with special cannulas to transfer the pure fat to the targeted regions of the breasts. They will transfer small amounts of fat to multiple areas of the breasts at different depths. This helps creates the highest rate of permanent absorption. An accurate injection technique is vital to create more uniform and natural-looking results.

The increase in the breast size will be proportionate to the quantity of donor fat available for re-injection into each breast. Women seeking to achieve a significantly large breast size may consider implants, but fat transfer breast enhancement can offer a moderate increase in breast size in an effective manner. In this procedure, the surgeon should aim to create uniform and proportionate breasts, and not just increase their size.

Plastic surgeons at VIPS receive patients from Northern Virginia, Washington DC, Vienna, McLean, Loudoun, Ashburn, Tysons Corner, Reston, Arlington, Chevy Chase, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and nearby areas for fat transfer breast enhancement.

For more information on the surgical and non-surgical procedures and treatments by Board Certified Cosmetic Plastic Surgeons Dr. Reps Sundin and Dr. Burton Sundin please visit

Serving Richmond, VA, Fredricksburg, Williamsburg, Northern Virginia, Washington DC, Vienna, McLean, Fairfax, Loudoun County, Ashburn, Tysons Corner, Reston, Arlington and surrounding communities.